{"id":260,"date":"2010-11-17T07:56:06","date_gmt":"2010-11-17T15:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.matthewliberty.com\/?p=260"},"modified":"2010-11-17T07:56:06","modified_gmt":"2010-11-17T15:56:06","slug":"quality-contractors-where","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.threeadventure.com\/matthewliberty\/2010\/11\/17\/quality-contractors-where\/","title":{"rendered":"Quality Contractors? Where?"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a contractor, more specifically a painting contractor, nothing pisses me off more than contractors. Here\u2019s why, I would venture to say that roughly 70% of my customers have told me horror stories that they\u2019ve experienced, and on top of that I have personally witnessed other trades people on job sites in which I am amazed they don\u2019t get their asses kicked. There are a lot of quality contractors out there but you really have to weed through all the snakes to find them.<\/p>\n

The trades are heavily regulated, but there is little to no policing in my opinion. Living in California we have the CSLB that is suppose to watch over the industry, but just like most other institutions in this state it is completely broken. So we\u2019re left with a bucket load of unlicensed contractors that can out bid us because they aren\u2019t paying to be licensed, bonded, or insured; and on top of that those of us who care about our customers and the quality of our work also have to battle for our reputations due to the poor attitudes and dismal quality that so many contractors bring to the table.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard about contractors that are never on time, don\u2019t even show up on the days they say they will, take a bit of money up front never to return, smoke on the job site, bring their dogs to the job site without asking the permission of the property owner, don\u2019t know how to pull their pants up, smell like crap, always try to tack on additional costs above and beyond the estimate, horrible quality, negative attitude, won\u2019t go back and fix something that needs it once the job is done, don\u2019t return phone calls, and don\u2019t even provide estimates after looking at a job.<\/p>\n

Are you kidding me? I wasn\u2019t as aware of all this until I had my own business and I was the one dealing directly with the customers. The stories are embarrassing and frustrating. So to all you contractors out there, step up and do something toward bettering the reputation of the trades. Turn in unlicensed activity, educate our customers, and run your business with integrity. There is nothing more important than building the relationship with your customers and maintaining that over time, stay in touch and prove yourself to them. I can\u2019t tell you how many past customers have turned in to present day friends.<\/p>\n

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